Various wireless communication systems are known in the art. In multiple access wireless communications systems, such as code division multiple access (CDMA), a base station transmits multiple signals to individual mobile stations. The base station transmits multiple signals on a forward link that typically includes separate data and signaling channels. Similarly, the mobile station transmits data and signaling via a reverse link to the base station.
Signaling channels used in the communications system are often used for tasks such as power control and for sharing system information such as data frame structures. The signaling channels transmit at a low rate and require minimal latency and high reliability since the information transmitted via these channels is used to control the communications system. High latency or erroneous data in the signaling channels may cause the communications system to become unstable, which severely degrades the system capacity. This degradation may be further exacerbated in a multiple access communication system that achieves high data rates through use of quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) along with Turbo encoders and decoders.
As mentioned previously, signaling channels may be implemented using a separate dedicated channel, which has its own convolutional encoders and decoders. Separate dedicated channels, however, require system resources that may be costly and not readily available and diminish resources available to other channels. Additionally, the separate dedicated channels incur a convolutional decoder delay. In order to reduce signaling overhead and avoid signaling delay, another method of implementing a signaling channel is to puncture bits on top of existing high data rate data channels. However, signaling accomplished through puncturing on top of existing data channels can degrade the performance of the high data rate channel and can also suffer a loss of reliability because there is no coding gain in this method. In this instance, attempts to increase reliability have included repetition of signaling bits, which consumes even greater amounts of system resources.
Therefore, a need exists for signaling channels in a high data rate QAM communication system that have high reliability and low decode delay while utilizing minimal system resources.